Sons of Anarchy was an adrenaline-fueled powerhouse of a drama whose legacy lives on through FX's upcoming spinoff Mayans MC. Co-created by SOA's Kurt Sutter and Elgin James, Mayans MC won't be resurrecting the entire SAMCRO crew for shoehorned cameos throughout its run, but Sutter has confirmed that these two worlds will definitely get mixed around for Season 1 and in future seasons. In Sutter's words:
The show takes place in real time, so it's post-Jax Teller. Three years or so has passed. I'm really protective of that mythology and the way it ended and letting fans --- whether they enjoyed it or not --- to have that experience and their idea of how that club continued and how those relationships continued. I really want to leave in the minds of the fans. There's no intersecting stories that will interfere with that, but Sons was a big world and there was a lot of peripheral energy and players and members and other charters, so there will be those kind of intersections. We'll see those points of intersection happen throughout this season, and the series as well.
Sutter's words to the crowd at San Diego Comic-Con should be great news for anyone who assumed Mayans MC would try and make it through at least one standalone season without tipping its hat to Sons of Anarchy lore. Many spinoffs feel the need to develop their own solid foundations before paying homage to predecessors, but sometimes fans just really want to see familiar elements right away, to let them know something isn't a complete overhaul. Granted, the fact that Mayans MC is a show about another motorcycle club is more substantial connective tissue than having someone take a phone call from Jimmy Smits' Nero. But nobody is turning Smits away at the door, so bring him on in!
Plus, Kurt Sutter has a solid point in wanting Sons of Anarchy to remain its own singular entity for fans to remember (since Tig cannot be forgotten anyway). He knows the Mayans MC creative team has to tread carefully when inserting SOA characters and references into episodes, with the goal of not dishonoring anyone's memories and opinions about the flagship drama. For example, if the biggest crossover character, Emilio Rivera's Marcus Alvarez, starts acting in a way that doesn't feel authentic to the performances we saw on Sons of Anarchy, the fans are going to let Sutter and Elgin James know about it in the loudest ways possible. As such, we shouldn't expect many direct references and narratives tied to the Teller family's burnout, even if some familiar faces from the periphery start to show up. (Although I would love an update on Abel and Thomas.)
Mayans MC actually laid out its first big on-screen link to Sons of Anarchy with one of its shortened teasers, particularly the one the showcased Jax Teller's roadside memorial, in reference to the flagship series' big finale moment. To me, that served as solid proof that this show will be able to handle its cross-show easter eggs and references in interesting and perhaps unexpected ways. And without even having to show Charlie Hunnam's stubble-ridden face.
Personally, I'm good with whatever happens. If Mayans MC stands up as a fully fleshed-out drama with all the expected emotional hooks and action beats, then I'd be perfectly happy if it lived on exclusively in its own fictional bubble, without any Sons of Anarchy elements showing up. But then maybe I'm only able to say that because I know that Sutter & Co. are already going to spice things up accordingly. However it goes, "great television" is always the goal.
Mayans MC is set to hit FX on (Teller) Tuesday, September 4, at 10:00 p.m. ET. Be sure to check out the first trailer on the next page, and head to our summer premiere schedule to see what is popping up in primetime before then.
